Areas for guidance
7. Clarify understanding and follow up • Check whether information shared has been understood by the person and their family. • Address any questions the person/relatives may still have. • Plan next meeting to review the situation. • Identify and delegate follow-up tasks. • Make a formal note of the meeting (see form overleaf) (15,33,85,86). 8. Self-care • Be aware of your own personal experiences towards death and dying (i.e. fear & guilt) as they can unintentionally influence your behavior. • Seek support if you have been upset by the meeting. • Debrief with the staff members after the meeting and discuss how it went, provide support for each other (15).
This is a summary of what we have decided. Are you clear about the information we have discussed or would you like me to go through any part of it again? Do you have any further questions at the moment? We can have a further meeting in X months to review the situation.
It was really upsetting to speak to the person and her family; there was so much anger and grief in the room.
Additional resources
Marymount University Hospice and Hospital and Milford Care Centre have prepared an eLearning programme addressing communication issues in Palliative Care. This online programme, which has a blended component, is aimed at guiding participants in all aspects of communicating with patients and families with particular emphasis on communicating in family meetings.
Facilitating discussions on future and end-of-life care with a person with dementia
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